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Methodological reflections on video observation
In various ways, the five research cases discussed in this volume show some characteristics of video observation as method: its intimate view on practices, the subtlety it allows in the analysis, and the variety in methodological elaboration and application. It brings us to discuss three methodological issues in the application of video observation: its presumed 'natural' character, the tensions between description, interpretation and intervention, and the extent to which ethical considerations are taken into account.

Hermeneutic narrative analysis: shaping possibilities
Hermeneutic narrative analysis: shaping possibilities
A hermeneutic narrative analysis is focused on shaping possible interpretations of what is told. The article describes the theoretical stance of such an analysis, like an interwovenness of the object and the subject, the knower and the known. It provides an example of the five phases of the analysis process. The purpose of that process is to interpret and reconstruct a narrative of and together with respondents.

Two ambiguities in the theory of just institutions are explored. If the "fair value of political liberty" is given the weight Rawls claims it should be given, an egalitarian interpretation of justice as fairness emerges. In that case, the lexical ordering of the two principles of justice is impaired, & restrictions in the total system of liberties may be needed to maintain the fair value of political liberty. The difference principle is shown to have two interpretations: the familiar maximin rule & a principle of "compensating inequalities," which are derived from Rawl's contribution curve analysis. This is the principle Rawls uses in his theory of just institutions. However, it is the maximin rule that Rawls seeks to derive from the original position. This derivation is deficient, owing to Rawls's unconvincing argument for an "as-if" risk aversion of rational contractors. Given different "as-if" risk preferences, one can arrive at a utilitarian contract, within the framework of Rawls's original position. The relation between justice as fairness & Rawls's account of civil disobedience is analyzed. Rawls uses the lexical priority rules to decide when civil disobedience is justified, & excludes infractions of the difference principle. This exclusion, while possibly convincing in a strictly egalitarian interpretation of justice as fairness, cannot successfully be defended. Modified HA.

The future of ethnography in the Big Data era
By taking an ethnographic viewpoint, Beuving explores knowledge claims about Big Data (BD) as discussed in Seth Stephens-Davidowitz' best-selling book Everybody Lies (2017). It portrays BD in a way that evokes affinity with ethnography: as a naturalistic research practice that makes small subpopulations visible and discloses people's hidden motives. But for Beuving this threefold assertion appears to rest on misguided conceptions. For the ethnographic researcher, naturalism refers to a reflexive practice, yet the BD researcher associates it with researcher invisibility. And the term population, which has a statistical meaning in BD, has a strong theoretical connotation in ethnography. Finally, motives in BD are about direct interpretation of revealed preferences as social facts, whereas the ethnographer considers them to be expressions of social behavior that require a Verstehende interpretation.
Bosch sees the relation of ethnography and Big Data research as a new form of Methodenstreit, which urges qualitative researchers to develop and apply user-oriented analysis techniques. Gigengack stresses that ethnography and Big Data are in fact incompatible. They should not be seen as methodological rivals in understanding society and social conduct. Ethnography and Big Data analyses are different perspectives on the social world. Ethnography should study the world of Internet behavior as it studies religious rites or societal identities.

Qualitative framing research as a means for enhancing persuasive powers in advertising and information for the general public
Qualitative framing research as a means for enhancing persuasive powers in advertising and information for the general public
Identifying and listing frames in the public domain often leads to qualitative research methods. The challenge for this qualitative inductive framing research is to picture reality as realistically as possible. A more varied range of data collection methods, specific interpretation schemes and reliability tests are effective instruments to achieve broader and more accurate results.

An image in technicolor. Fifty years of wars in Vietnam 1940-1990 gives a broad and innovative interpretation of the history of Vietnam between 1940 and 1990. Black and white characterisations, one-sided interpretations and prevailing myths are debunked. Instead, a nuanced and multifaceted picture is given in which the United States is less prominent.
History is not only written by the victors and, in this case too, the history of Vietnam during this period cannot be attributed solely to Ho Chi Minh and the success of the Communists in 1975. The internal losers, that is, the other political movements and their leaders, must also be given a crucial place in Vietnam's history. For example, the civil wars that took place between 1940 and 1990 played an unmistakable role.
The older, idealised image of North Vietnam is inaccurate. This country was a dictatorial and oppressive police state. After 1954, the North Vietnamese leaders were embroiled in a fierce power struggle and were largely responsible for the war in South Vietnam. The answer to the question of who the legitimate representatives of the Vietnamese nation were also requires a more balanced judgment of non-Communist politicians, such as Bao Dai, Ngo Dinh Diem and Nguyen Van Thieu.
As for the role of international players, initially, it was the Cold War that determined the United States' interference; later, it was American credibility. In the end, it was the support from China and the Soviet Union that was the deciding factor for North Vietnam's victory.
Important new perspectives are given on the role of minorities, the meaning of 'a third way', the devastating effects of the strategy, the role of women and girls, and the mental and cultural aspects of the wars.